This section provides background information related to the present disclosure which is not necessarily prior art.
A plasmonic laser uses surface plasmons instead of light to pump a lasing medium (Noginov et al., Nature 2009, 460, 1110; Zhang et al. Surf. Sci. 2007, 601, 5445). Because of the short wavelength involved, there is the potential to reduce the dimensions of laser devices below the emission wavelength of the laser. As the size decreases, wafer device density and modulation can be increased. Other advantages include low power consumption for an individual device and the achievement of wide area emission from a laser array.
Tunable plasmon resonant cavities in the form of a wire array patterned on a fused silica substrate using laser interference lithography are disclosed in application US 2012-0224255 published on Sep. 6, 2012, the full disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference, along with a suggestion to provide a laser by filling resonant cavities with a gain medium. Further development is required to produce suitable plasmon lasers.